Wizards of 'Warty Part One
by CleverforClever
Summary: Jalex H.P./G.W. Goodness during GoF. Justin enters the competition, unknowingly part of a bigger plot. But everything is not what it seems. Slightly A.U. Different events and stuff. 2/2/2013- Okay, it turns out I accidently put the wrong chapters in here. So, I am re-publishing this material. Sorry!
1. Chapter 1

This is my first fanfic. Be nice, review, etc.

Disclaimer, I will be awesome by combining all the other disclaimers on this site. Basically, I don't own Harry Potter or Wizards of Waverly Place.

A.N. This is a re-upload, somehow parts one and two got mixed up. Yeah... weird.

Chapter One Dreams and Darkness

It was a dark and stormy night, which was only made worse by the fact that once again, Harry Potter was in the mind of Lord Voldemort, the most fearsome dark wizard in the world.

It was an unnatural feeling of extreme loneliness. It had been a year since Voldemort had been to Hogwarts, a year since he tried to contact Sirius Black for assistance, two years since Harry had seen that _thing_ erupt from the diary, and three since he had done anything of importance.

For the greatest of the Dark Lords, Voldemort was feeling deeply unfulfilled.

(This is, of course, a story of my own design. Some things are different, others remain. The basic plot is still there, so just hang loose, and you'll get the gist of what's different.)

Nevertheless, there was some cause for hope. A faithful servant had found him, and found a way to protect him. Voldemort was pleased. His thoughts turned to Hogwarts, and of the boy safely hidden away in its walls. Very soon, the two would meet again, and when they did….

Harry bolted upright in bed, his scar burning, "Bloody Merlin's bong! Every time! Every time I get a regular life, that maniac goes off the deep end all over again!" He screamed to himself. Ron rolled over, mutter something about Red Vines. (Is that "A Very Potter Musical" reference? I love me.) Harry stayed panting, and then got out of bed.

"I'm going downstairs," He told Ron, who muttered something about bringing back food. Harry shook his head. There was ever chance that his friend would have been the one to defeat Voldemort- if Voldemort did not make him work hard, and was made entirely out of melted cheese. Still, Ron was a great hand to have in a fight. Harry felt safer with his friend by his side, but needed to make sure his feud with Voldemort did not affect those closest to him. The boy got up wearily.

Feeling as though he had better look around to make sure that the house was secure, Harry took off down the hall. He came to Ginny's door, again. (He found himself here often, not knocking, but always wanting to.) 'Well,' said Harry to himself, 'I am trying to make sure every is safe, and Ginny… maybe she needs me right now…' Ginny was… well, Ginny, Ron's sister, and so off-limits. But still, it was the opinion of many a boy that she deserved extra attention. To Harry's surprise, the door opened.

Though bleary eyed and with bed-head, Genevra Weasly was no less a striking sight to the young Wizard. She glared at Harry, and invited him, as sweetly as possible given her state, to tea.

Harry eagerly agreed, though he felt guilty sneaking off into the night with a girl. Back on Privet Drive, this would never have happened. And Hogwarts, though decidedly relaxed on blowing things up, usurping the authority of the government, and the occasional death, made a silent rule about dating; 'do it, but don't _do __**it**_, do it.' This was rarely an issue due to the lack of privacy, and the fact that one's lover may be someone else in disguise, acting under magical mind-control, or evil. Surprisingly, all three had come up quite a bit in History of Magic, to the point that even Harry had taken note. William the Willing had supposedly bedded three willing witches, which actually turned out to be one witch using polyjuice potion while under the _imperious_ curse. It was a weird story, which would have been slightly erotic had it been told by anyone born after the invention of the wheelbarrow. Professor Bins made a point to drone on boorishly until he had to be corrected by Hermione.

She had been nothing but smug knowing something her teacher did not, which spurned Ron to tell her that they didn't need a teacher to tell him that, which made her tell him he was being stupid, which led to him licking her sandwich, curses were exchanged, and, by the end of the day, Harry was willing to make an Unbreakable Vow to _never_ pay attention in class _again_.

Harry came out of his musing to see Ginny handing him tea and cake. Though fiery on the outside, she certainly had a softer, more domestic side to her, like her mother. They were sitting across from one another as though they were already family. A scene flashed through Harry's head of him holding her at a future Christmas, with Ron and Hermione opposite, whilst red-headed children played, 'bop the slimy Slytherins' between them.

Ginny gave him the same look Snape sometimes displayed, as though reading his mind. Harry popped back to himself, asking how she was.

"Oh nothing, just my boyfriend waking up screaming obscenities about the Dark Lord," She trailed off, and then blushed, "I mean, a boy who is a friend. I think of you as my friend, and you're a boy, and… you're avoiding the topic!" She accused furiously, "What was going on up there?"

Harry tried to keep his voice light, but speaking of his parents' killer was… difficult. The more he spoke, the more confident he was that Voldemort would return a third time. When he mentioned that his foe would return to Hogwarts, he noticed her go noticeably paler. The previous year, she had stumbled upon the dark wizard, and he had gotten inside her. It had been horrible for her.

"So… maybe for the third year in a row, I can host…" She tried to joke, but she was too stressed. She made a choking noise.

"Hey!" Harry said abruptly, "I'll take care of you. I promise."

He got up and hugged her, ignoring the misty eyes.

"Bloody Merlin's bong! Every time! Every time I get a regular life, that maniac goes off the deep end all over again!" Justin screamed to himself. Alex rolled over, mutter something about Red Vines. He stood over her bed, trying to shake his sister awake. "Alex, Alex, Alex, Alex, ALEX, ALEX!" Eventually, she grumbled something dirty-sounding about the only way he gets a girl in bed, and how rude he would be to that girl.

"Where's your wand?" He demanded in a high voice.

"Hmm-mmm… get more…?" She replied throwing her messy locks about.

Justin sighed, waving his wand back and forth, Alex launched out of bed whirling like a cyclone, dressing, cleaning, and washing. She stumbled as she slowed, throwing herself into Justin's arms. He caught her nonchalantly, and straightened her. Though they would never say it aloud, the two always seemed to hold onto each other a little longer than necessary…

"Geez Justin, what's the big deal? I was… wait; did I just clean my whole room?" She made a face, then ran her tongue across her mouth, "And use mouthwash?!"

"Yes, well, I noticed you were beginning to develop dog breath, so…" He smirked and she grinned, a comeback on her lips… which promptly died. Dogs led to wolves, and wolves, like everything around her lately, led back to Mason. Justin stopped smiling too.

As if out of the blue, he stared his little sister in the eyes and told her, "Alex, I want to try to take care of you…" He let the sentence hang, then handed her back her wand. "We're going back to Wiztech. A foreign wizard named Alastair Moody found your wand being smuggled to a death-eater. Apparently evil is afoot, and Professor Crumbs needs futurenaut Justin Vincenzo Pepe Russo to stop it."

Alex sniggered, "And I'll be there to cause it. By the way, how does being half nerd half dork, half wimp stop evil from stepping?" She added then flashed away

Justin fumed, not over being called nasty things, but over the fact that Alex was so horrible at math. She did not even care enough to consider it in her insults!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Portkeys and Patronus'

Harry had been surprised to see how much Ginny knew about him. Sure he understood that people watched his life. He had been in the public eye unknowingly, but aside from rumor and speculation, she managed to get further into him then either Ron or Hermione. The former would not be so surprising, as Voldemort himself could pretend to be Harry and get away with it. Harry imagined Voldemort trying to 'hang out' with his young friend, wearing his glasses and a cheap wig, bad-mouthing Snape, blowing off homework and calling Hermione uptight, (again). The two had met during the confrontation for Sirius' soul the previous year.

'Even he thinks she's too much to handle, then again he also likes the sound of his own voice…." Harry thought to himself. The previous year, Voldemort had approached Sirius Black for help. During this, he had finally taken notice of Hermione and Ron. The 'mud-blood', he had been pretty crude about- (using the kind of language that best describing a monkey that mated with dogs) and the latter was a blood traitor who was too attached to, "A filthy beast parading itself upon its masters. Pushy and foolish in the truth of the powers in this world." Ginny had her mind ripped open. That was the sound he heard now when dementors were around. It was so high, like his ear drums were shattering. Voldemort forced himself into her, drenching her very soul with his disgusting energy.

Strangely, young red-headed woman had not spoken to Harry all morning. It was fine with him. He felt as though he had all the worst parts of him removed by their conversation. He was now available for Quidditch, hatred of Snape, and the typical jokes on Dumbledore's age.

"Dumbledore is so old, he remembers when evil was born," Ron muttered, still too tired to be upbeat, but not so much that he did not want to participate in a particularly rowdy round of 'what mates make Snape', which Hermione had won accidently when, while defending the teacher's ancestry from her friends' accusations, accidently went on a ten-minute rant on the exact contents of a troll's toilet. The things that had come out of her mouth were so disgusting even Mr. Weasely was looking at her with new eyes.

"Dumbledore is so old," Began Percy, who happened to participate, "His wand needs to be carbon-dated."

Hermione laughed, but everyone else just looked even more exhausted.

"He's so old," popped in Fred, "His baby teeth are fossilized," Finished George.

"Harry," Said Ron, "you haven't had a go yet." It surprised the orphan that he was participating in a family event… though he knew on some level, he was. But he was not ready to play.

"Dumbledore is dirt's father," he spit out lamely.

"Who's its mother then?" Asked Ron.

Ginny sprinted past them, up the hill, "Dumbledore is older than gender. He didn't need one."

The boys were Dumbstruck. "Well, boys, what would we be without our women?" Added Mr. Weasley as they reached the port-key.

"I would give anything to keep her away from me!" Yelled Justin. Alex fake-sobbed even louder.

"Oh, Mija, I'm sure you will have fun…" She glared at her son, who was now trying to drop his sister off at the house.

"I wish you weren't my brother!" Alex yelled at the top of her lungs.

The room stilled.

"Don't you ever, ever say that," Her father growled in a low voice. "You have no clue, none, what something like that could cause."

Alex looked up, "Okay, so why can't I go to England with Justin?" She snapped.

"British wizards are different than us. No competition, no flashing until you're seventeen. Besides, Professor Crumbs asked for Justin, if he won't take you, you can't go. I know you really want to go to Europe, but the Old World just went through a couple of huge upheavals. It's starting to quiet down, but it's too dangerous for an inexperienced wizard."

Justin let out a squeak before he could stop himself. The family stared at him.

"I wouldn't say inexperienced… she brash, rough, nasty…" she glowered, "But she could be one of the finest if someone prepared her."

"Great! You do it!" With that, the adults bolted, leaving Justin and Alex to square off.

Alex flipped her hair back, striding to Justin using her pseudo-flirty walk. "Max!" Justin yelled, "Alex has candy for you!"  
>"What? I do not!" She said in shock. It was too late. Her little brother ran down tackling her to the ground.<p>

Justin took this time to go to the family lair. He took out his wand, scratched the back of his head, and focused. Closing his eyes he muttered.

"Expecto Patronum…" a wisp came out. He knew without opening his eyes he had not done it well enough. Apparently kissing Miranda was not enough. He just had to try again. "Expecto Patronum…" He focused harder, but sneaking off with Juliet was not enough, either. Harder, he told himself, again, again, until you get it right… "Expecto Patronum!" Something oddly limbed disappeared in a flash.

"What are you doing?" Asked the last person Justin needed to hear from. He did not open his eyes. "Go away Alex, I did this before, I can do this again!" It would not take him long he knew, and Justin knew almost everything, except how his sister managed to get under his nerves.

"I told Max that I wasn't Alex. He didn't believe me, and then I told him you weren't Justin. He seemed to believe that…" She trailed off. "What were you doing?"

He turned to look his cute little sister in the face. It was odd for him, the way he saw her, more a girl best friend than as a sister.

"I was trying to generate a patronus. I thought I sensed a dark angel the other day," He explained. Alex shrugged and plopped herself in the comfy chair. She couldn't think of a time that she would need a patronus to fight off dark angels.

"How's it work?" She asked. Although he would be wasting time, (she never paid attention to him) he may open up enough to teach her, and then she could convince him to keep teaching her, and then take her to England….

"You need a happy thought," He said introspectively.

She glanced up at him sarcastically, "Any happy thought? This isn't Disney!" She snapped.

Justin sighed, frustrated. Alex sensed that today she should try and co-operate. "Look, I have my wand," She added sheepishly, holding it up. Justin seized her hand. Pulling her up, and holding her close to him, Justin extended their hands intertwining. Her lungs seized nervously. Her eyes went wide as a wind filled the area. Books flipped through pages, the chair rocked back and forth, the candles in the corner flared brilliantly. "Expecto Patronum"

Justin's wand vibrated so hard it was tapping the jewel on his sister's. A thin white mist poured from both, but only Justin managed to produce a Patronus. A large bat burst from within, soaring around the room. It settled on his shoulder. He looked at it forlornly.

It looked surprisingly like a certain blonde girl…

"Oh Justin," Whispered Alex, holding him close.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 Butterbeer and Boys

It had been a great day for Harry. Besides hanging out with Ron and Hermione, he had managed to covertly buy a ring from one of the venders and slip into Ginny's bag. When going through her things, she was immediately suspicious of it, but after a private chat with Hermione, had decided to wear it. Harry wondered just how underhanded he had become, because everyone in the group now had something from him. He was pulling Percy away from an argument over a tagless mattress when they ran into a pair of wizards getting into a fight.  
>The two seemed to be going at it like cats and dogs. Harry was reminded of Ron and Hermione almost immediately. The girl was on the ground, protesting how much mud the boy was getting on her robes. The boy was puffing red, dragging her with all his might to their campsite.<p>

"I don't wanna!" She screamed like a small child. The boy paused, his eyes glued to Harry.

Ron let go of Percy, who muttered about the letter of the law and walked off. The boy let go of the girl, and made his way over.

Harry waited for the eyes to sweep his scar, but it never came. Apparently he knew without having to check.

"Hey Harry," The girl bubbled animated, "You have a scar, just like that Jerry guy…" Her bounce seemed to have returned to her step the second Justin's attention shifted. "Wait! You are that Harry Potter, guy!" She practically screamed it.

"And you are Justin Russo," interrupted Hermione, turning a bit pink. "I saw your presentation on the misuses of dragon blood, you're a genius!" Justin smiled. Hermione started a conversation with him. She twirled a bit in her skirt, and laughed at everything he said. Alex's eyebrows flew up and she stepped between the two.

"Alright, we get it; you want to have a super-dorky baby. Well, the world does need one. Time for you to flash out of here- oh, that's right, you can't do that yet!" Though a bit rude, Alex felt very proud of her ability to humble the girl so much like Justin. Ron stepped up and patted Hermione on the back.

Justin rolled his eyes and introduced himself and his sister to Harry.

"You two are related?! Doesn't seem like it…"Harry was further amazed when Viktor Krum came up and told Justin it was time for them to go. The Russo boy nodded, pulling his sister away from the celebrity.

"Alex, no problems, none, okay?" with that he left her in the capable hands of Hermione Granger, who sounded so much like Justin, Alex wondered if she was a clone. Ginny, on the other hand, was much more fun, the two of them walked back to the camp thinking up revenge schemes.

"Gosh! I can't imagine having…" Alex ran through the list, "seven?"

"Close enough," Laughed Ginny.

Night was falling, and Alex did not feel like walking all the way back to the Russo's room. So, she decided to stay with the Weasleys, who were parked between Mr. Crouch and Mr. Diggory. Justin dropped by to make sure she wasn't troubling anyone. Apparently Mr. Weasely was a family friend that their father mentioned in class, thus escaping the memory of Alex. How was she to know that some guy her father used to be in a club with would pop up?

Alex dragged Justin out of the tent and into the shadows. She rounded on him with the determination of a raging hippogriff folding her arms over her chest seconds after he had his crossed.

"Justin, what are you doing here? Trying to embarrass me?" she hissed, clutching his arm stubbornly.

"Oh Alex, you do that all on your own. Actually, I was going to let you stay the night, but if you're such a child," Alex let out a rude noise at that moment, "Then you might as well come back with me right now!'

It was at this moment that she choose to unleash her most powerful weapon against him; puppy-Alex.

"Okay Justin, please help me. I just wanna stay with my friends one night, and I was being nice, too. But if it's too much to ask for even one night of peace…." She threw in a bunch of words that polite people tended to use, the whole time letting her puppy-dog eyes unleash their power. Unconsciously, she stroked the bicep of his left arm until he released his wand. Once the muscle in his arm relaxed, she latched onto him until every muscle in his body slack off. She closed her eyes and imagined herself back on the couch of Waverly Place, clutching to him as he saved her once again. He was more than a brother to her, more than a rival wizard. His smell was of a thousand different spells mixed with his monster hunting masculinity. Here, win, lose, or draw he would always look after her. And they both knew it.

Justin let a knot of worry he did not know he had been harboring go. He knew the Weasleys, but he also wanted to make sure his sister was okay. Somehow, he knew she was more important than anything else in his life. When he was younger, he had taught her a spell to take her to Istanbul (he knew where it was, but she did not.) He and Max played a prank on her by tricking her into transporting herself there. His father's anger was…. Palpable. It did not matter that Justin regretted it almost immediately. Jerry Russo was furious at his sons, but he came down harder on Justin than Max, who thought it was hilarious. Justin had found her in the midst of a party, but had been unable to convince her to return with him. He left the party and sat by himself, as she had convinced him to let her stay, 'forever, and ever, and ever….' But then, the party had died down, and she had come crying to him, because she was afraid, and no one had taken her home, and she was scared that nobody liked her, and she needed him. As her tears poured down, her face, Justin immediately took her home. She ran from him, and his father was still upset.

She had not spoken to him for days. He could not know whether or not he was feeling bad or just upset. From then on, he made her ask him for help before teaching her his magic. To him she was that little girl again, but this time, he had to let her stay. This time she would not come crying to him afterwards. The over-bearing conscience that had been pounded into his mind told him to watch her, but his heart told him she should be okay…

He muttered something about checking out the neighbors and dropped her suitcase in the girl's side of the tent. On the way out he made arrangements to meet up again later.

Once he was assured that his sister would be fine, Justin flashed himself back to his tent.

"Americans," muttered Fred, "Always so flashy." The night was winding down; the males in the tent had stuffed themselves, and napped out. Harry less so than the others. He had kept his snacking to a minimum, excited at Justin's offer to play Twelve Ball, and also, he was afraid of going back into Voldemort's mind.

Ginny was cleaning up, helped by Harry. Alex noticed, absent-mindedly, that watching these two were like watching her better days with Justin. They were connected, two of them, like peanut butter and jelly, Romeo and Juliet. She shuddered at the last one. Juliet was gone; Alex was all that Justin had left.

"Ginny, can you levitate me upstairs?" She whined loudly to get the two moving, "C'mon, a little bit of magic never hurt anyone." There was silence as everyone in the room realized just how wrong she was. "Fine, a little bit of magic always helps a relationship!" She perked up.

She staggered under the effects of butterbeer and an unholy amount of Bertie's Every Flavored Jellybeans. She let out a laugh; "I think Harry wants to help me to bed…" she winked suggestively. Harry blushed, stuttering out an explanation to Ginny. The red-head was ignoring him.

"C'mon, Harry, I think it's bedtime," She set Harry down on the couch. Alex could read the promise in her eyes to return. As her hand left Harry's arm, a knot of fear appeared as he wondered what would happen if his newest protector vanished…

Alex watched as they cuddled up, just like she and Justin would many late nights, both exhausted, but too comfortable to sleep… She felt a stab of loneliness, figuring that her brothers were probably messing around in their room. Her eyes drifted off as she watched them…


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 Death-eaters and Dangers

BANG!

Harry awoke with a start, telling himself that everything would be okay, which worked until the warm Ginny-shaped lump moved off him. Soft, pale hands put his glasses on his face, and his eyes focused on her for a second, then Harry pulled himself up. Fred and George gave the two young friends a brief telling look, 'You two be careful.'

"What's going on?" Asked Alex, confused.

"Death-eaters…" muttered Percy reverently, as though he were preparing for an exorcism.

Harry grabbed Ron, who grabbed Hermione. Alex ran after them.

"Lumos!" The three whispered. Alex followed suit. Percy, Mr. Weasley, and every adult wizard they saw, was rushing towards Harry saw Mr. Diggory run past, and Mr. Crouch stopped, eyeing him warily.

"Harry Potter…" he barked, "Time to get along, children. There's no way we can attack the death-eaters while they are holding those hostages aloft." He shouted this last part to his co-workers.

Harry stopped, looking back at the crowd of death eaters. The villains were levitating innocents. Suddenly, a young wizard came running up, yelling his approval of the idea of those who were flying around mid-air. He then jumped into the trail of magic, flying up to a young girl, which he grabbed.

"Max! Get over here!" Yelled a voice, which Max ignored, soaring across the darkened sky, taking the girl to safety.

Every wizard and witch in the area paused as a whoop of triumph sounded.

_Screw running_… said Harry to himself. _I want to fight back_! He passed a couple of dark figures struggling on the ground. He ignored the smaller problem in favor of facing against off against the followers of Voldemort.

"Stupefy! Stupefy!" He screamed. Death-eaters crumbled one by one. Justin appeared at his side with Alex, bellowing his own spells.

"Mosmorde!" A deep voice bellowed. A giant green skull erupted from the sky. Silence erupted, and then panic set in, people disapparating away, death-eaters and innocents alike. Ministry members surged forward to collect the fallen.

"What's this then?"

Harry looked up in wonder, only to be accosted by ministry members in seconds.

Alex had been restless. Harry and Ginny were cuddled together as if made to fit each other. Sleeping over had been surprisingly unsettling to her. Her father's snoring, her mother's complaining about snoring, odd sounds coming from Max's room that nobody really wanted to think about…

Then there was Justin. It was reassuring to know he would always be around to help her. If she woke up, and the Nazi/zombie apocalypse had finally happened, this was her order of things to grab; fashion magazine, Justin, snacks, clothes, and then her wand. Nothing could go so bad that he could not bail her out.

The screams had started in the middle of the night.

The first time she had flashed was with his help. Max had confessed they were going to prank her with a ten minute banishing spell to Istanbul. She came up with one to send herself somewhere nice there. Justin had sent her, unknowingly, into a festival. At first, she was pleased that she managed to get away with something, and then she was happy her brother could not stop her. Once the party started to die down, she realized she had no other way back. If she had just performed the spell the way he taught her, she would have gotten home safely. It had been embarrassing how deeply she was shaken.

_Not that he'd remember_, Alex thought bitterly. Justin probably would not care if he never saw her again. It seemed to Alex that her brother was willing to ignore her for whatever this wizard tournament was. Not that she cared, she was Alex Russo, Princess of the house, and he would bow to her will. She took out her diary and started an entry.

The sounds from the campsite disturbed her latest graphic fantasy. She was trying to formulate a story where she was a princess (again). This time Justin would be a lowly servant, but instead he kept turning out to be a prince in disguise. _I can't even control my own fantasies_…. She thought to herself. No matter how often she drew him, he always turned out to be a knight in shining armor. It was really annoying! And the noise from outside was so distracting!

Alex went to the door to tell the neighbors to keep it down, New Yorker style, when she realized just what was happening. She stood in the doorway to the tent with her mouth gaping. The Weasleys awoke in alarm and she was hustled out of the door.

Her friends taught her a new spell, but the tiny beam of light did little to comfort her. Alex caught sight of Max running towards the men in black shouting how much fun it would be to go flying. She ran after him, realizing too late that she was now separated.

"Expelliarmus!" A male voice hollered. Her wand flew from her hand.

"What? My waaaaand!" she whined. A second later, a blond boy tackled her to the ground.  
>She hit the earth with a thud. Whoever this wizard was, he was determined to pin her down, forcing her arms down. He bent down, calling her a blood traitor, and bit her ear.<p>

"I'll show you a real wizard's power…" He trailed off. Alex concentrated on levitating him off her, but the boy sent pain through her arms making her cry out. A group ran past them, oblivious to the scene. A familiar voice snarled a threat at 'Draco'. A flash of light and a disturbing 'pop' sound later, and Alex found herself helped to her feet by Justin.

"Blind-sided me, have you seen my wand?" She asked. Justin shook his head.

"Time to go."

Alex kept close to him, figuring it was safer, and that she would eventually find her wand.

"What's this then?" Grunted Mr. Crouch, as he and Justin wrestled over a red wand.

"My wand!" Alex cried. The looks around them silenced her. She picked up on the hint. "I think…?"

A green haze was pouring out of it. Justin walked over to her, hissing in her ear, "When your wand was taken yesterday, I finally convinced Dad to put a safety device on it too keep you, err, it, from being used for powerful dark magic…"

She looked at him fearfully, then at the sky.

"Then this is….?" Alex withdrew her open hand. The gears were spinning. Her wand had been used to summon the skull overhead, and now a dozen ministry members were all witnesses.

"Seize her!"


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 Elves and Eventualities

It took seconds for Harry and Justin to jump between Alex and the ministry members. It took a few minutes to determine that there was no way a young foreigner like her could be a death-eater. Crouch was unconvinced.  
>"I'll have her in chains in front of the dementors!" He proclaimed.<p>

"Leave my sister alone! How would she know how to summon that mark? She has low marks in pretty much every subject. She's too young to be a death eater, and, oh yeah, you kind of need full powers to pull that off!" Justin then went into a highly specialized explanation detailing the impossibility of Alex using her wand for that magic.

"Move, Russo, or go with her," Amos Diggory stated calmly.

Harry was surprised to find Cornelias Fudge telling him to stand down.

"This is Justin Russo, you can't arrest him! It would cause an international incident. Come now, these two heroes fought to maintain order, we have a dozen witnesses who are most impressed with Mr. Potter. As for the young lady," Alex put on her best puppy-dog pout.

"She's with me," Said Harry. It was annoying to him that others were _once again_ making choices that affected his life. It is time for that to change.

"It's plain as the nose on my face that the young lady here is innocent," Alastair Moody piped in. That was not saying much seeing as most of the protuberance had been blasted off. Harry was about to ask why he was not at the safe house with Sirius when he realized that he was not supposed to know what happened to his parents' betrayer. Taking a deep breath, Harry told them where the ministry could find the Weasley's tent. One of the workers was about to make a suggestion, and Harry told them where they could put that suggestion, and the Quidditch stadium was welcome to follow it.

He grabbed Alex, who grabbed Hermione, who grabbed Ron. The trek back was almost as bad. The results of the event had unsettled everyone. Children were crying for their parents, parents for their children. Mr. Bagman sat alone staring dumbly into space. There was a scary few minutes during which Draco Malfoy tagged after Alex, whispering evilly about what he would do to her. He left due to the fact he was out-numbered 12 to 1.

The Russos stayed in the Weasley tent. It worked out well, because Justin was capable of making conversation with Percy, and Max kept the twins busy. Alex was having plenty of fun with Ginny, who reminded her of Harper. Justin had brought some snacks from home, and taught Harry a bit of twelve-ball while Ron growled enviously. At dawn, Alex demanded Justin give her a piggy back ride, due to her exhaustion. Justin turned to Harry on his way out.

"See you at Hogwarts," Then vanished through the doorway, his sister drooling tiredly on his shoulder, and Max trailing behind.

Harry set down the paddle, and huddled together with Hermione and Ron. The both secluded themselves to a corner.

"Alright, what was all that?!" He demanded.

Ron, for once, beat Hermione to the answer, "Crouch was a big guy back in the day. Lots of power, lots of guts. Put a right high amount of folks in jail, including," he gulped, "Sirius."

Harry stiffened. The previous year, his parents' friend had broken out of an unbreakable jail, had found Harry, and told him that there was much he did not understand. He also had taken out two ministry members and a dozen dementors who got in the way. Voldemort himself had arrived to ask for use of the Black's body, who refused nastily. Harry had learned a few choice swears that day. And now Alastair Moody was here, deepening the connection to Sirius. It all came back to the convict.

He left Harry a mirror, and the promise that one day, all would be revealed.

"Maybe you ought to write him a letter?" Asked Ron quietly. Black was an enemy who acted like a friend. Hermione let out a huff, but did not interject her opinion until Harry had processed what she considered to be a foolish request.

"I think I will, yeah…" Sirius was now in a Ministry controlled safe house. They feared that his return to Azkaban would spark a massive breakout. Also, there was much to his story that did not fit what public records indicated.

_Sirius,_

_Loads of death-eaters are in the area. What are they doing here? I think that something is on the horizon, something you know about, but will not tell me. I am afraid. You said you were my father's friend, but nothing you have said could have prepared me for what I have witnessed tonight. I want to trust you, but you have given me no reason to._

_Harry James Potter_

Alex just could not believe she had almost been sent to prison. Sure she was bad, naughty really… but evil? Never, she would never succumb to that temptation.

Justin had almost bruised her arm he had pulled her out of there so fast. It was one of the only times in her life her brother had been angry at an authority figure. She actually heard him use some of the more coarse wizard-swears. Max was, well, he was Max, off in la-la land, completely ignoring the fact that he was a hero.

Mr. Weasely had gathered the children around and put the boys to work.

Ginny had mentioned that Harry had a thing for saving people. Alex had noticed Justin and Harry kept towards the front of the tent, wands clearly at the ready. If a pixie had even sighed, there would be so much magic flying the ministry itself would not be able to stop it. She felt tired and frustrated, which was not helped by the fact that Alex, Ginny, and Hermione were told their work was done, and to sit quietly in the corner, fully clothed. Exhausted and frustrated, the three were quite grouchy.

Eventually, the evening winded down. Harry learned about 'spin' in Twelve Ball and Max started a conversation with the twins.

Justin told her to get ready to leave, and they headed off. They flashed themselves to an American Wizard Consulate, and requested a room. Alex had not been in a consulate since she and Justin had to get to Transylvania to find Juliet. American wizards lived by different rules, so they used the consulates as flash-points for longer trips.

Alex finally managed to get to sleep. The days turned to weeks, and soon, it was time to go to Hogwarts for the tournament. The three Russo wizards were told to appear at a building known as a B.A.L.L. to be transported properly to Hogwarts. From there, they would somehow be transported to the school. (Alex lost attention when the person explained their transportation.)

Justin was the most obvious choice for champion from Wiztech, although Jerko Phoenix also stood in the running. The two had squared off in the days leading up to their departure. Alex had been on hand to make running commentary on how her dork brother was no match for the athletic Phoenix.

"The only way my brother could play a game was if someone was threatening him with a paddle," She smarmily mimicked his frantic flailing.

"You find it hard to count to twelve, Alex," he shot back. Justin was at a disadvantage. He had to take his rival's taunts as well as his sister's.

"Maybe if you spent a little less time fighting little girls, and a bit more practicing the craft, you wouldn't lose the champion's position to me…!" Jerko cut in.

Alex bristled at the 'little girls' comment, but Justin grabbed her arm and took her to the B.A.L.L.

"Psh… I could take him down. I hope he gets his eye gouged out, that way he has an actual use for the eye-patch. Or, if he had an accident on the way there…" She smirked at the thought. Alex noticed how detached Justin was. Whatever was coming, she felt the tension in the air. Max was quieter than usual, which made her wonder if he understood just how dangerous his actions were. Justin charmed their suitcases to stick to the wall of the B.A.L.L. "I don't see why Max and I can't participate in the cup… What is this B.A.L.L. thing anyway?"

Justin came out of his trance to answer her. He did so with a bunch of long words she did not understand, but the structure they were staying in was shaped like a ball, so that was enough for her.

"The B.A.L.L. is Wiztech's, mass transport vehicle. This is how we're getting to Hogwarts. And you can't participate because you're too young," He paused, "And a big cheater." There was silence, and he perceived she was not satisfied. "Wizards have died in this, don't take it lightly."

A loud rumbling sound reverberated throughout the hall. Justin grabbed a handhold. "Looks like it's time to get rolling." He was being literal. The room started to roll in a circle. Alex tumbled head over heels, over and over. She landed in an undignified position on Justin who grabbed whatever part of her anatomy he could to stabilize her. She let out a yelp as his hands found her.

The part he grabbed was a bit… sensitive.

The room kept spinning. Anything not strapped down flew through the air. Max, for his part, could not have enjoyed himself more thoroughly. His screams of delight drowned out Alex screaming in terror, and Justin grunting, scrambling to adjust himself. It was worse on the turns. Max had decided to eat a live chicken with his breakfast, so he went flying about spraying orange juice for him to catch in his mouth. Every few seconds he had to dodge his sister, who spun through the air like a ragdoll, hair waving. Just like always, she turned to her brother, literally.

After all these years, they had a way of communicating that went beyond just words, a way to understand one another even while upside-down. All they needed was to be in one another's presence to be understood; distance had always been their enemy. Alex managed to flip her body into a more comfortable position on one of the turns. The bed, bolted to the floor/wall/ceiling depending on the direction of the B.A.L.L., was her target. Justin ground himself to the mattress, bracing to catch her.

Max flew out of the room, and ran sideways on the wall down the hall, whooping with joy. Alex aimed clumsily for the bed, her brother's arms about her waist. They landed with a grunt, and he managed to grab ahold of the headboard pinning her to the mattress. They were finally comfortable with him lying directly on top of her, eerily reminiscent of a lover's embrace as the movement of the building rocked their bodies. Max whined as he flew back into the room, "Aw, is it bed-time already?"

Harry stood outside in the cold, waiting for his friends to arrive. Beauxbatons and Durmstrang had already arrived, and sat themselves. A low rumbling sound was heard, and in the distance, a massive orb rolled over the hills like some sport for giants.

It whirled to a stop at the gates. A massive breach opened the ball. An enormous ramp settled down onto the grass with a deafening thud. A white light blasted through the hole. Then, silence…..

"Wiztech proudly presents, its champions!" a voice boomed.

Then more silence, then more…. A minute had passed, then another. Then a loud groan was heard. A boy stumbled out dizzily.

Max was talking animatedly to his sister, "Do we have to wait in line before we go again? Are there corndogs here?" He noticed Ron's food and launched himself. Alex, losing the stability of her brother collapsed on the grass.

"I mean really," She whined, "Who makes these things?!"

Music from inside started slowly, first a small harmony, then trumpets, a swell of drums. A single figure strode from the darkness. A man was striding forward, confidently glaring down the rival schools.

Justin walked out, his head held high, walking erect. He nodded to Harry. Professors Dumbledore, Karkaroff, and Madame Maxine each shook his hand, and then led him off to the side with Fleur and Krum. The American strode confidently straight towards his rivals.

"So," Began Krum, "How was your journey here?"

Justin threw-up noisily on the whole group.

Alex buried her face in embarrassment.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6 Cups and Champions

The rest of the night continued predictably. Beauxbatons sat at Ravenclaw, Durmstrang at Slytherin, and Wiztech evenly divided itself between Hufflepuff and Griffindor. Justin was explaining all sorts of historical facts about the millennial palace. Harry found his knowledge… daunting. Apparently someone who had never been to the school had read 'Hogwarts, A History,' and looked up the notations. _I've got to get around to doing that._ He thought to himself. Not the notations part- even Hermione thought that was a bit too much. But reading the book would make Harry's life so much easier…

Draco walked by Alex giving her a pointed look, and licked his lips. She sneered at him. The boy then stopped in front of Justin, giving him a haughty once-over.

"You should sit with us," He hissed. Justin locked eyes with the blond. Heartbeats pounded as something fomented. Harry stepped between them.

"This isn't over…" Draco whispered fiercely. Then Dumbledore started his speech. Alex pulled her brother over to Griffindor. Harry sat between Ron and Hermione, across from Ginny who gave a shy wave.

Dumbledore announced that the wizard cup had last been won by a typical wizard, who won based on merit, not power. At this point, he also had to explain why he had been keeping it for the last 100 and some odd years.

"I got to be honest, you guys, I, like, totally forgot I had it… my bad!" He chuckled heartily. "Now listen, the Wizard cup is a powerful object! You cannot lie to it. When you put your name in, it will digest your emotions, your power level… it will only choose those who are powerful enough to compete." The silence in the hall sent goose bumps up Harry's arms. "Don't be fooled, don't enter on a whim. This will take more than intelligence," He gestured to the Ravenclaw table where the Beauxbatons were sitting, "Bravery," He motioned to the Griffindors, who promptly stopped moving, "Cunning or loyalty. This will take your heart and soul. Let not any witch or wizard enter lightly…." The earlier tone that had been so funny was now gone, and, for the first time, Harry noticed the scars that had always been on Dumbledore's face.

The hall was emptied, Max was staying with Ron and Harry and Alex was to stay in the girl's dormitory. Justin muttered a caution about the two of them that sounded suspiciously like 'black hole' and 'pizza cow.'

Harry climbed the stairs, disappointed to see that Ginny was ensnared in the same conversation as Hermione and Alex. Whatever he wanted to say to her could wait. He took a moment to say goodnight to Hermione, and had an excuse for a small talk with Ginny. Then he had to talk to Alex so as not to seem rude. He bid them both goodnight. The girls yawned something sweet and went up. The hairs on the young boy's neck stood on end when Ginny said his name as they went up the steps, only to get giggling in return. Harry went to bed not knowing what would come in the morning.

Alex spent hours with the girls, talking, and joking. It was the greatest slumber party on earth. Magic flew about the room with ease. They snuck down to the Vanity Room where they met some Pansy Parkinson. Alex gasped at the girl haven, each wondering what to wear the next night at the party.

Morning came entirely too early. She was dragged out of bed by Hermione and a couple of the bigger girls. They used magic to dress her, (of course) and stumbled into Max on the stairs. According to him, he was looking for his chicken so that he could suck chocolate eggs out of her.

Alex sincerely hoped he was referring to Easter eggs. She sat down, wishing the day would go by quickly.

And it did. Unlike her time at Wiz-tech, she made lots of friends, and was very popular. It did not hurt her that she was friends with Magical Briton's messiah. It was all going so well, until Malfoy showed up.

Harry turned from one of the sweetest boys she had ever known into a something completely different. The two did not fight like she and Justin. The words were real, intentional, and rated 'R' for Rip-your-head-off-and- dump-proxy-waste-into-your-slimy-body.

"Half-breed," Malfoy spit at her, "Not so tough without your big bodyguard are you?" Ron snorted a reply, gesturing to Crabbe and Goyle.

"Not so big when you can't blind-side a girl!" She barked.

"Didn't hear you complaining," He flashed his eyes. The boys behind him high fived.

"Maybe if your ear weren't filled with peroxide, you would have!" Alex snapped waspishly. He seemed to follow her around. She caught him talking to Justin, who listened intently to what he had to say.

Then the big feast came. The wizard cup was settled onto a pedestal in the middle of the floor. A blue flame erupted from it.

Durmstrang and Beauxbatons were easily predicted. Krum and Fleur took to the stage predictably. A blue flame burst up, announcing Cedric's foray into the championship.

"And for the final Champion…" the paper landed in Dumbledore's hand, "Harry Potter?" He announced quizzically. Harry flushed red as he passed Alex. She turned to Justin for an explanation.

He had already prepared his answer, "In the competition there are some rules more important than others. The cup determines power, and ability, but it must select one champion. Traditionally, there are two competitors, a champion and a reserve. The reserve is typically determined by the champion... The other schools must have determined their own. This time goblet choose for Hogwarts. In this case, putting your name in the goblet is dangerous because you never know the result; champion or reserve. It can choose who the champion's reserve will be, and the tests, that way the 'judges' don't try to manipulate the challenges for their own agendas. …"

The last piece of paper hit Dumbledore's hand lightly. The hall was quiet waiting quietly, anticipating who their new hero would face.

"Jerko Phoenix!" There was mixed cheering across the tables. The teen in question strode down the aisles as if the second coming of The Boy Who Lived. Alex relaxed. She could not believe how nervous she was. On the one hand, she wanted Justin to compete; he really wanted to. It meant a lot to him; on the other… at least he was safe. Alex refused to think of how she would take his death- if it came to that. He had told her how dangerous it was.

"Now, I suspect that you'll each cheer your champion on…." The goblet flared up again. If anyone was more confused than Alex, it was the teachers. No one moved or spoke for a long time. Dumbledore choked out, "Justin Vincenzo Pepe Russo." He declared to a shocked audience.

Alex's eyes went wide.

A.N. Dun dun dun... R&R. I will explain the whole 'Reserve' thing, okay?


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7 Alex is a Bad, Bad Girl… and So is Ginny…

The celebrations that night were loud and long. Harry could not understand one thing though…

How did his name get _into_ the cup? He had not entered himself, and was surprised to be selected at all. Occording to the official rules, the Wizard Competition would be 'families' from different nations going head to head. In the past, wizards had lost their powers, but since Dumbledore kept the Cup for so long, the practice had gone out of tradition.

Harry thought about this for a moment; why had some judge asked Dumbledore to bring it back out? Although the thought of the schools were entertaining, it certainly made no sense to him to endanger students. Maybe Dumbledore did not believe Harry had the makings of a champion. Then again, there were the whole 'reservists' rules. Apparently, since it was a team effort, in the past, if a Champion could not play on, a reservist had to go in his or her stead. Naturally, magic forced someone to be a part of the tournament, but this year two had been named. That was unusual.

A distraction in the appealing form of Ginny Weasley appeared. Justin excused himself to find Alex. Harry managed to stutter out a greeting to his fellow Griffindor. She looked him up and down, sipping something sweet smelling. She licked her lips. Harry was suddenly very thirsty.

Harry's instincts to take control of a situation caused him to take her by the arm, and lead Ginny about the party. She let him… for a while. When the witch separated from him, he sought to take her back. He excused himself from the conversation, and sought her out. He spotted her hair, and made his way to her. She left for the common room, navigating the corridors with swiftness. Whenever Harry would get close she would sprint farther. He considered the fact that she may want to be alone, but then why would she keep him in sight every time she turned a corner? She entered a room Harry had never seen before. The smell in the air was too intoxicating for him. He felt like a monster in his chest led him about madly. The room was exotic and lavish, with cushions and pads everywhere. A female figure appeared behind a dimly lit screen. Ginny's shoes were right beside it.

The boy wizard could _just_ make out the silhouette of a young, lithe female projected onto the screen. The shadow moved slowly, slipping off her socks first, then… more important article. Harry swallowed dry as she slipped off her outer robe and put it on top of the screen. Next went an under-robe.

"Miss Weasely…?" Harry asked breathlessly. He got a laugh that sent chills up his spine. "Welcome to the Vanity Room. Wizards forget that two of the founders were girls, and knew that a girl looooves to feel pretty…" She sounded predatory. If he watched without distraction, he could see the straps of her underwear. A naked arm gestured over the top of the screen to a chair. "You can sit if you like; I'm just looking for something to wear to the party."

Harry was reminded of bowing before the Buck Beak. Eyes straight forward, spine like a line, and respect was present with every movement, he sat in front of the screen. His hands started sweating. _Get it under control, Potter, she's just a friend_. He scolded himself. _She is a friend, who happens to be a gorgeous, amazing, girl who happened to have a crush on you bigger than a basilisk. _

Then Ginny threw a shirt over the top of the screen, then a skirt. A squeak erupted from him. He felt the need to remain perfectly still. _Stay quiet if you have any sense, Potter, _he scolded himself. It was hard not to visualize the girl on the other side, the 'good skin', the fiery red hair…

Then undergarments were placed inside the pocket of the robe. The Vanity Room was blazing hot. Harry loosened his collar. _Why do girls need it so warm all the time_…? Harry was not sure where this was going. ON the one hand, this was Ginny, his best mate's sister, who was just a kid. The other, this was **GINNY**, who was _not_ a little kid anymore, biology had seen to that.

She stepped from behind the screen. Harry threw his hands above his eyes. He was about as red as possible.

"What do you think?" Ginny asked shyly. Oh, if she wanted an opinion, he was more than willing to give one to her.

"I…." He peeked from behind his hands, "Love it." She was wearing a dress. Harry knew the expression on his face was inappropriate- lustful. He arranged himself to something more thoughtful. Some part of his mind registered his ring on her finger. It made him very happy to see it. She was… beautiful, perfect pale skin in a plain white dress.

His eyes stole away to the clothes on the screen when she went to the mirror. Apparently, the look was not lost on Ginny. She advanced on him, her swaying hips throwing the bottom of her long, white dress back and forth, and back and forth, and back and forth…. Hypnotizing Harry.

"I ought to talk to Alex about leaving her things about," She made a face. Then she put two and two together, as placed her hands on her hips, "Harry James Potter! What kind of girl do you think I am? I just brought you along to tell me if my dress looks nice!" He sputtered, hands flailing wildly.

"Guh, gah, Alex!" He seized up. Ginny looked him over slyly. "I think you are an amazing young lady who would never do something bad." He spit out lamely.

His history of fighting monsters, overcoming the most difficult of puzzles, and fighting Lord Voldemort took over. Harry stood bravely, squared himself.

Then he ran for his life.

He ran into Justin, partying in the main hall with a couple of gorgeous Beaxbaton girls.

"Harry!" He yelled, clearly enjoying himself immensely.

"Hey Justin, I need to ask you a question," He pulled the older wizard away. "I didn't put my name in the Goblet. Really!" he insisted after seeing the look on the American's face.

"Well, maybe… no, impossible. It has to be written by the champion, or in this case, reservist. I could not put in Professor Dumbledore's name. It had to come from you. If you paid attention…" Harry suddenly understands why Alex sometimes got snippy on people. Listening to Justin Vincenzo Pepe Russo for this long was difficult. Doing so for 16 years? Insane.

"Justin! The point, please?" He questioned.

"Fine, it is not enough to scribble your initials, there has to be emotion behind it. You have to _mean_ it. If I wrote, 'he was **just in** time to **rus**h **so**meone to the hospital' and someone took that and ripped out the parts  
>with my name on it, that would not work. It has to have intention behind it. So, the question is; to whom have you given your signature recently?" Harry went through his head. He had classes, so each of the teachers had his signature. It would just be like Snape to enter him into something that could kill him. Then there was the letter to Sirius.<p>

"Wait… Sirius… he got my letter…" Harry concentrated hard on whether or not he had signed it.

The party got out of hand pretty quickly. Ron came up, declaring that he could sneak every muggle in London and nobody would notice.

"Ron, that's it. Grab Hermione," Harry screamed. Ron turned red. "I need her help with something…" A plan formed in his head.

Alexandra Russo whooped with delight when her brother returned. She never thought she could be so proud of him, nor show it. She was going to love the coming year. Justin ruffled his little brother's hair. Max was going on how no Russo had ever taken so much upon themselves.

Alex tapped her foot impatiently. He should have been spending time with her. Justin was hers, hers to torment, hers to command, and hers to control. It had always been the two of them, the one exception the time they had with Juliet and Mason. He was going to have to pay for his foolishness, and learn his place was by her side. That had not ended well. She was about to congratulate Harry, when she saw that Ginny was looking down.

"What's wrong?" She spoke into the girl's ear.

"I can't afford a nice dress for Harry's party," She said it as though the actual champions were negligible- that only _her_ Harry was worth attention. Alex felt the same way.  
>"You can have one of mine," She whispered. "I'll get it into the Vanity Room." The young Russo had given her word, and had no intention of going back on it. She took off for the dorms. The introspective look on Harry's face told her she had a minute or two. He looked like Justin did while solving a troubling problem.<p>

She dashed up to the dorms, ignorant of the footsteps pursuing her. Coming back down the steps of the dormitory, she suddenly lost her footing as it turned into a slide. Alex tumbled down the steps, and ran into a lump at the bottom.

"Justin," She cried, sitting on his chest. His pursuit had triggered the step slide. Alex straddled her brother, struggling to her feet. He grabbed her hand as she scrambled out of the room. They ran to the vanity room. Her brother started getting nervous as she kicked off her shoes in the hallway. Then she stripped off her socks and robe. He started hyperventilating when she started on her shirt just as she reached the door.

Justin picked up her shirt out of habit. Then, hesitating, he followed her in. She bolted behind a screen, slipping out of her skirt. Alex was not very shy; she peeked around the corner condescendingly. Justin noticed absent-mindedly she was still stripping while telling him to leave.

Ginny came in with her shirt already half-way up. She stared at Justin, and then pushed him behind the couch. Alex pulled her friend behind the screen, and started helping her change. Justin could hear the two hissing like cats, (Alex, it's too tight. My leg doesn't go that way). Then the door opened. A young boy settled himself on the couch. Justin peeked up; staring at the back of Harry's head, then his acute vision showed him Alex slyly helping Ginny into her dress.

Alex figured Harry would not see her if she hid behind the robes she and Ginny had thrown over the screen. Once Harry's view of her was blocked, she scrambled, half-dressed, behind the couch. Justin was so focused on Ginny he did not notice Alex, half-naked, clambering over him until she was breathing down his neck, literally.

"Jeez Justin, I'm your sister, chill," Alex whispered deep into his ear, tickling the lobe. Their breath hitched at the figure on the couch moved. Then the door slammed. Alex heard Ginny lean sideways against the couch.

Justin and Alex popped up. Alex was smiling evilly, "That went well I think!" Ginny jumped up, eyes wide, face red as her hair.

Oh…. It was going to be a long night for the boys at Hogwarts.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8 Let Sleeping Dragons Lie

Whatever fun Harry had before the first task was soon drowned out by the fact that he may soon die. Ginny had done a decent job distracting him, but now, facing almost certain doom, he felt as though his time with her was like a convict's last meal, which of course reminded him of Sirius. How did Sirius get his name into the Goblet? If the piece of paper that came out was indeed his, then there must be a way to check.

To make matters worse, he had another dream last night. He was the cup, watching as the champions circled him. He was not part of the group. Then he heard Voldemort laughing, waiting for Harry to die. The boy was getting tired of nightmares.

He was wandering the halls thinking about what it meant. Luckily, Hermione had started an immensely boring speech on the mating habits of dragons, allowing Harry's mind to wander. Ron was leading him in a chorus of 'Justin Time' when he broke out of it enviously. "Hermione, what happens to the paper that comes out of the Goblet?"  
>"Oh," She chirped, "The words are magically transferred to the edge of the cup if they are the winners. The losers, well, they're tossed," She then went down a trail describing a 'describlio' charm.<p>

Harry was already plotting a way to break into the headmaster's office. No doubt Dumbledore would have some knowledge as to how his student's name ended up in the Cup. It occurred to him that Alex would be more than willing to help him break the rules. It was then that Justin came up, bumping into Harry, causing him to drop all his things.

"Sorry," The American growled. His sister came along and helped Harry pack up. Her closeness gave him a chance to whisper that he wanted her help. She slipped a piece of paper into his hands, and then left with her brother.

"Oh…. Nice moves Harry! The ladies love a hero!" Ron crowed. Hermione started a fight, saying that Harry ought to be accepted the way he was, not just because he was a Reserve. For the better of two minutes, the two argued loudly. Harry looked down at the slip. It had a wand number. What was more important was what else was on the paper; dragon information.

"Hermione, what's this?" He whispered feverishly. "Homework?"

"No… looks like research for…." She paused, paling, "The first task." She pulled the reservist to the side. "We have to keep this quiet."

The sound of the paper opening, and being read to oneself in Ron's voice was heard, followed by him screeching, "Dragons?! The first task is dragons?!"  
>Alex rushed, catching up to Justin. "What was that?" She whispered. "Will you tell me what's going on?"<p>

The whole day had been confusing. Jerko had demanded Justin's presence after breakfast. Both needed to practice before taking on the first task. The disheartened look on her brother's face sent a flash of annoyance through her. Whether she was jealous of his success or annoyed that someone she loved was being pushed around was not apparent. Maybe it was both. She was headed to a nap (I mean, class, she told herself) when Justin came back, with sweat pouring down his face, ash in his hair, burn and claw marks down his shirt. He was scared. So, he of course, went to the library.

He was gone for hours. Hermione tricked Alex into the library by starting a conversation she was interested in; boys. They discussed who had the best hair, who was a good kisser, and what they should do with their hair. Slowly, Alex lost concentration on her location, and wandered into the library.

She found Justin, literally inside a pile, with Madame Pince levitating quietly next to him. She looked stunned. Her brother- Mr. Rules- had used magic on an authority figure. Gasp.

Alex felt as though she was the one hit by a curse. Justin was scrambling. She could see a couple of tear tracks marring the mud, blood, and ash on his cheeks. He was looking through literally dozens of books. Using magic to flip through, shut, then toss aside if they were not useful. If the pile he was on was a mole-hill, the one of useless materials was a mountain. He scanned information quicker than any computer she had ever seen, a brilliant mind at work.

"Justin, what's wrong?" She asked quietly. His mouth quivered, it would open, shut, and then open again.

"Hermione! You may want to read this!" He shouted, startling those who were already looking at him as though he were nuts.

"Oh! I should share this with Harry…" She trailed off, finding the first chair and pulling in.

"Yes, yes you should…" Justin muttered to himself.

"Geez Justin, Harry will be real thankful. I can barely listen to her lectures, and I've grown up with you! Good luck getting him to try to learn," She sarcastically spit. Justin nodded fervently. He was taking her words to heart. For the thousandth time, she grabbed his arm, and pulled him to the side. Just like always, the two were alone in a corner, talking heart-to-heart.

"Justin, please, let me help you," she let her hair fall to her eyes, giving him her softer eyes. Justin nodded. He picked a piece of paper up and handed it to her.

"Make sure Harry gets this to Cedric. Be sneaky," He muttered.

She took it, and, for once, simply did what she was told.

Of course, Justin did not tell her what was going on, so she saw no reason to tell him she was going to break into the headmaster's office. _What are they going to do_, she asked herself, _kick me out?_ She met Harry in the library. Apparent Hogwarts was atrocious for wand coverage. Also, British wizards were discouraged from using their wands for calls due to the reign of, 'You-Know-Who.' Alex had no idea what they were talking about, until Harry said, 'Voldemort' which brought back the scariest lesson she had ever had. Even being transported to Istanbul was not as bad.

Jerry had separated his children, taking them into the lair and told them all about the Great War. It was scary to her. Years later, she went through a similar, and, strangely enough, less stressing talk when her father told her about boys. It was like her father was there; he described, in graphic detail, horrible murders, kidnappings, and torture techniques. She ran out half-way through. That was when Justin knew she could never be evil. He followed her afterwards, and held her until she was okay again.

"I will always be there for you," he promised.

Justin always kept that promise- unless she was going to help his rival in the competition. Harry had asked for her professional assistance in troublemaking. (Apparently, the fame of the Russo family had spread across continents.) Harry and Ron met up with her after dark.

Of course, Harry had broken into the office before. It turns out that he possessed an invisibility cloak, something that Ron said he should have kept from Alex. She rolled her eyes.

"That hussy is the enemy now!" He declared. Alex thought it was a bit cheap, but her Justin-bashing rant convinced him she was going to help Harry to undermine her brother's success. Harry kept referencing a map, which seemed dumb. Didn't he know his way around by now?

And, of course, they were caught half-way there by Mad-eye. He talked to Harry about his plan to fight the dragons. They discussed opportunities he had. Alex heard Harry ask about a man named 'Black' but there was no reply. Justin was also patrolling the halls, and decided to accompany them. (Just her luck, big brother had more to rat her out for.) They were set down in the office. Justin told Mad-eye he would watch them.

The American let out a gasp, "The sorting hat of Hogwarts…" He quoted the entire entry in 'Hogwarts, A History'. Apparently, the desire to put it on was too great. Once it was over his head, Harry started looking about the office. Alex started filling her pockets. Harry found a swirling bowl. He followed Justin's suit, and plunged his face into the mixture.

Alex tried to steal that too, only to have the headmaster clear his throat.

"Hey!" she said in her, 'gotta get outta trouble' voice, "Did you wash your beard, 'cause…" Justin stole a squeal from her when he went through her pockets. Her face turned bright red as his hands dug into her pants and shirt.

He started putting the things back.

"Oh no, Justin, I have quite enough things… I think however, that there are some things that cannot be replaced…" And he too disappeared into the bowl.

Alex went back to stealing his things behind Justin's back.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9 Memories of Morbidity

Dumbledore appeared next to Harry, his face full of concern. They were in a memory of great importance; a line of death-eaters stood before them for sentencing. Dumbledore had missed Barty Crouch Junior's trial against Karkaroff, but Harry watched eyes full, as Lucius Malfoy and Severus Snape were excused from trial. The judge, Barty Crouch senior, had an air of self-righteousness.

"If you will excuse me gentlemen, I must go see to the orphans of this war…" Crouch senior harrumphed.

"Time to go, Harry," Dumbledore grabbed his student's arm.

Harry found himself back in the office. Justin was scolding Alex in the corner.

The ancient professor took control, "I hope that our heroes of the hour are not running around for no reason at all," He then excused the rest, and listened intently to Harry. "Well, Harry, I think you're right. Although I am concerned for you, I will speak to Mad-eye. But honestly, he would have mentioned if Sirius had done anything suspicious." A black dog in the corner wearing a black necklace perked its ears. "Mind you though, that every letter Black gets is sorted and screened by ministry members including most of the Justice system, the Department of Mysteries, and the Council. Admittedly, it is to keep him under control. However, here is the letter."

He handed it to Harry, who saw the even cut took that removed the name, 'Harry James Potter.'

"So why is my name in the cup?" He asked quietly.

"I think, Harry, that this is part of a bigger scheme. It would certainly make sense that a death-eater would want you to compete. I fear Lord Voldemort needs you for his triumphant return to power."  
>Harry considered ways of getting into Hogwarts. Voldemort could come in possessing someone, but he needed them to agree. Sirius was supposedly being watched by Mad-eye, but now there was evidence to the contrary.<p>

It could be a death-eater, but Snape was not the type to let anyone in. Karkaroff might be the host… Harry shook his head. The headmaster had betrayed Voldemort- there was no way he would allow his former master to take over his body. Plus, Krum was a good guy. There was no way Voldemort would use a Durmstrang student, right….?

So much of the plot was missing. It felt like he was looking for a puzzle piece that did not exist.

"Professor, why does he need me?" Harry asked.

The headmaster stroked his beard thoughtfully, "I believe that his return requires a sacrifice. It is not so simple a waving a wand. Deeply dark magic must be invoked. I still do not know who put your name in, nor do I understand the significance of the champions. Let us take Justin and Jerko. Personally, I have reason to believe the former is superior, yet he was named as reserve. Jerko was out first, so he was named champion. I know we have missed something important in the selection of our competitors. There seems to be some plot underfoot. Of course, ways Voldemort could kill you are not as important as the fact that he can't, or, more specifically, won't. He needs you for reasons I don't understand."

Harry went back feeling more lost and confused than ever. And with the weighing of the wands in the morning, he had enough on his plate.

Justin had a firm grip on Alex's arm. He was dragging her down the hallways of Hogwarts despite her many protestations. He shoved into the common-room and told her to stay out of trouble, which is just about the dumbest thing he could have done.

He woke the sleeping dragon; the Queen of the House was going to bring him the pain.

"Fred, George, you two want some publicity? Well, I need your help with something…."

A sizeable crowd had gathered for the ceremony. Mr. Ollivander went through the other schools first. Alex was on the tip of her toes. She had given Justin a hug in the morning as an apology, and he had not noticed her swift hands. He stood there nervously waiting for the wand-maker to make his declaration. When he reached Justin's wand, he paused.

"Curious, curious… Americans have highly impersonal methods of creating their wands. Of course, I don't know why you would use this kind…" He waved it, and it became a red silk pair of underwear. Justin gaped at the thong. Mr. Ollivander squinted.

"Who is Alex?" For a quiet man, his voice carried. Justin seized up like his father, calling Alex to the front. Whoever thought that, 'Alex' was a boy was pleasantly surprised when a beautiful girl keeping her head down walked forward stuffing her clothing into her robes, then hiding behind her brother. Wolf-whistles were heard from the crowd.  
>"Oh, get your mind out of the gutter, she's my sister!" He roared. The crowd shook with laughter. The twins were displaying their pranking wands to an animated crowd. Inspired by Alex, they made new prank wands that turned into panties.<p>

Alex turned, ready for a fight to remember, when she saw a slack look on Justin's face. He, like Cedric, was off to the trophy room to look at the cup, again.

"Justin," She called quietly, "Why does this matter to you so much?"

For the first time in her life, an honest question did not get her an answer. He just turned and walked away.

If Alex's stunt had affected Justin, it was a quiet change. He regarded her more suspiciously. Max, though, was having a blast, wearing a dozen pair of underwear. (He was a big buyer of the prank wands, and used them on himself.) Jerko Phoenix held his standing over Justin's head so much, even Alex got tired of it. If anything, her brother became even more sullen and withdrawn. The champions made a habit of walking into the trophy room of Hogwarts. Justin would stand there for hours, talking to himself. It was terrifying. What was worse, Cedric's father had written him constantly, telling him how important it was for him to win.

It was not until Dumbledore himself (according to the rumor) let slip that there was no way to know who was champion, and who the reserve was that things got worse, much worse.

First, Draco started making 'Support Cedric' buttons, claiming that Harry would try and take all the glory from Hufflepuff. Since Justin was in the same boat, his sister decided to take action as well. This led Alex to create the infamous, 'Justin Time' dance. Step one, a simple twirl of the hips, a spin of the wrists, a popping of the lips, and a shaking of the fists, then dance was done.

It grew to such popularity that it was banned within a week. She could not have been more pleased.

Then the first task came.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10 The First Task, and the First Fallen

Harry's stomach was doing backflips. Krum's Reserve had just been hurtled out of the stadium like a fanged Frisbee.

_And the morning had been going so well…._

Mr. Crouch announced that they would be fighting dragons. Nobody had been shocked. Harry, for his part, had told Cedric about the first task. Viktor had been seen out on the grounds practicing against something resembling a dragon. Harry had used the invisibility cloak. There was no way to know how much magic was used to simulate battling the creature, but it was incredibly advanced. The young wizard felt quite immature in comparison.

Hermione had reported Madame Maxine had been talking to her students on possible tricks to use against a dragon. Harry was grateful the Grangers had taught her some French.

Cedric had come up with a plan to transmute a rock into a dog as a distraction. This plan would split the risk between himself and the dog, hoping that cutting the danger in half would be enough to distract the monster, and not put Harry at risk.

"I don't want a kid's death on my hands," He said sincerely. (It did nothing to help Harry feel like a real competitor.)

This plan was pretty good, except for one complication. Well, four complications. The champions would be going simultaneously, against four dragons. Seconds in, it was obvious everyone there was severely outclassed.

Once the dragons were released shrieks drowned out the roaring. Cedric had pushed Harry down and was doing a reasonable job of fighting a dragon with Jerko's help. The two had shared responsibility by alternating between blasting water and throwing up a shield.  
>Harry spotted a little blonde girl clutching a gilded flute screaming and crying behind Fleur who was dancing furiously. The whipping hair had attracted his attention as she bounded back and forth to take on a dragon all by herself. (And, by the way, whoa, what a woman!)<p>

**_Screw this competition!_** Harry swore. He tore from his hideout, and tackled the young girl who clutched the flute. She shrieked, and then realized it was a human holding her down. A blast of fire roared over his head. Harry looked up seeing the singed back of a sooty Justin who had foolishly took on his own, and also anger Fleur's.

"Got a plan?" They both screamed.

"I need my broom," Harry shouted, spraying water across the ground trying to keep the fires back, but only succeeded in making it slippery.  
>"Accio broom!" Justin shouted. A scream of pain attracted his attention. Jerko was rolling in the ground clutching his eye. The nimbus 2000 came rushing in. Harry felt an invisible connection to it, something he could not define. The thing came in at a perfect arc, as if an old lover was finally being reunited with her man. He was like a bird, meant for flying, struggling across the earth to his wings. Being a wizard meant that he was an oddity- until he could fly. Then, once in the air his first year, Harry knew that he was finally where he belonged. All he had to do was outrace a dragon to win.<p>

...The beast had other plans.  
>It was like the dreams in Voldemort's mind, only this time, extremely pleasant. He could see his feet slipping and sliding in his body, but he also felt the broom soaring towards him. The Hungarian dragon was hounding his every step. Remotely, he heard Ginny screaming his name, and a surge of pain down his back… he jumped… then he was airborne. Freedom, sweet, fresh air, and lightness flooded him.<p>

This was his element. The crowd roared appreciatively. Every eye, including intimidating dragon eyes, turned to see him. He rushed upwards. Cedric sent up a flash of red sparks, signaling Harry he was ready. A barking sound told him the dragon was distracted.

_I hope there aren't any animal lovers in the audience_, Harry thought to himself. He aimed at the Horntail, determined to out-fox it. Charging it was almost suicide-so that's exactly what he did. Harry swooped under its jaws, between its legs, and grabbed the golden egg. For good measure, he whipped back, tangling the dragons together, and grabbed the mutt, which licked his face.

Harry handed Gabrielle the dog, walked into the champion's tent, and then broke down mentally.

Alex had never been more excited or more afraid. Max was going nuts.

Justin was going to fight a dragon! Sure, she had faced one, but still... she had released it purposefully, and manipulated events to rip its heart out. (A.N. Merlin's Hat reference) Even though it all went according to plan, she had barely survived. She had fought an adolescent Yellow-bellied Canadian, it almost killed her.

A Hungarian could kill a Yellow with one claw. There was no doubt that Justin would go right for the most challenging one. He would feel it was his duty to do it. Alex knew Jerko would leave her brother to die if he could. He had written her a note it class. A picture of her brother with a little rhyme about fire showed up on her desk, and then burst into flames. It was hard to ignore that image.

She was sitting with Ginny, Hermione and Ron, the last being withdrawn and moody.

Alex was cheering the champions. When Justin's name was called, she cheered as loudly as possible. Max, true to form, dressed down, painted green with scales and red lips. He had used magic to glue on horns and grow wings. (She sincerely hoped it was not with a Permanent Gluing Charm.) He danced a bit, and told Justin to distract the dragon.

Halfway through saying, "Harry James Potter" Some nincompoop released the dragons. The announcer lost all sense of decorum, swearing on Merlin's outhouse, and running for cover. The champions froze for one second, and then surged forward, ready for whatever fight came their way.

Justin, predictably, was taking on as much as he could. Jerko, also predictably, abandoned him. The Delacour girls were using magical music to lull the dragons into a peaceful slumber, which would have worked if Viktor had not shot a curse into the eye of his dragon, causing it to flail uncontrollably into the others. Alex let out a scream as her brother stepped between Harry and a fire blast. Justin began working together with Harry. The two managed to get the mission accomplished. Alex cheered as loudly as possible when Justin took on three of the four, all at once. She had never been more proud.

The standings were as follows:

1) Hogwarts

2) Wiztech

3) Beauxbatons

4) Durmstrang

It was obvious Hogwarts had done best. When Jerko had been injured, it hit his eye- so he actually needed the eyepatch. Viktor had done a fine job, but was penalized for the loss of his partner. Fleur had only failed due to outside interference, since her plan likely would have worked had it not been for Viktor's interference.

Alex ran up to Justin, who smelled like dragon breath, and hugged him, crying. She kissed his cheeks and told him how worried she had been. He held her like she was his heart in his hands.

Alex knew the second task would be worse…

A.N. Review, get a chapter.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11 The First Task, and the First Fallen

Harry's stomach was doing backflips. Krum's Reserve had just been hurtled out of the stadium like a fanged Frisbee.

_And the morning had been going so well…._

Mr. Crouch announced that they would be fighting dragons. Nobody had been shocked. Harry, for his part, had told Cedric about the first task. Viktor had been seen out on the grounds practicing against something resembling a dragon. Harry had used the invisibility cloak, unsure of how much magic was used to simulate battling the creature, but it was incredibly advanced. Hermione had reported Madame Maxine had been talking to her students on possible tricks to use against a dragon. Harry was grateful the Grangers had taught her some French.

Cedric had come up with a plan to transmute a rock into a dog as a distraction. This plan would split the risk between himself and the dog, hoping that cutting the danger in half would be enough to distract the monster, and not put Harry at risk.

"I don't want a kid's death on my hands," He said sincerely.

This plan was pretty good, except for one complication. Well, four complications. The champions would be going simultaneously, against four dragons. Seconds in, it was obvious everyone there was severely outclassed.

Once the dragons were released shrieks drowned out the roaring. Cedric had pushed Harry down and was doing a reasonable job of fighting a dragon with Jerko's help. The two had shared responsibility of alternating between blasting water and throwing up a shield.  
>Harry spotted a little blonde girl clutching a gilded flute screaming and crying behind Fleur who was dancing furiously. The whipping hair had attracted his attention as she bounded back and forth to take on a dragon all by herself.<p>

**_Screw this competition!_** Harry swore. He tore from his hide out, and tackled the girl. She shrieked, and then realized it was a human holding her down. A blast of fire roared over his head. Harry looked up seeing the singed back of a sooty Justin.

"Got a plan?" They both screamed.

"I need my broom," Harry shouted, spraying water across the ground trying to keep the fires back, but only succeeded in making it slippery.  
>"Accio broom!" Justin shouted. A scream of pain attracted his attention. Jerko was rolling in the ground clutching his eye. The nimbus 2000 came rushing in. Harry felt an invisible connection to it, something he could not define. The thing came in at a perfect arc, as if an old lover was finally being reunited with her man. It felt like he was a bird, meant for flying, struggling across the earth to his wings. Being a wizard meant that he was an oddity, until he could fly. Then, once in the air his first year, he knew that he was finally where he belonged. All he had to do was outrace a dragon to win. The beast had other plans.<br>It was like the dreams in Voldemort's mind, only this time, extremely pleasant. He could see his feet slipping and sliding in his body, but he also felt the broom soaring towards him. The Hungarian dragon was hounding his every step. Remotely, he heard Ginny screaming his name, and a surge of pain down his back… he jumped… then he was airborne. Freedom, sweet, fresh air, and lightness flooded him.

This was his element. The crowd roared appreciatively. Every eye, including the intimidating dragon eyes turned to see him. He rushed upwards. Cedric sent up a flash of red sparks, signaling Harry he was ready. A barking sound told him the dragon was distracted.

_I hope there aren't any animal lovers in the audience_, Harry thought to himself. He aimed at the Horntail, determined to out-fox it. Charging it was almost suicide-so that's exactly what he did. Harry swooped under its jaws, between its legs, and grabbed the golden egg. For good measure, he whipped back, tangling the dragons together, and grabbed the mutt, which licked his face.

Harry handed Gabrielle the dog, walked into the champion's tent, and then broke down.

Alex had never been more excited or more afraid. Max was going nuts.

Justin was going to fight a dragon! Sure, she had faced one, but still, she had released it purposefully, and manipulated events to rip its heart out. (A.N. Merlin's Hat reference) Even though it all went according to plan, she had barely survived. She had fought an adolescent Yellow-bellied Canadian, it almost killed her.

A Hungarian could kill a Yellow with one claw. There was no doubt that Justin would go right for the most challenging one. He would feel it was his duty to do it. Alex knew Jerko would leave her brother to die if he could. He had written her a note it class. A picture of her brother with a little rhyme about fire showed up on her desk, and then burst into flames. It was hard to ignore that image.

She was sitting with Ginny, Hermione and Ron, the last being withdrawn and moody.

Alex was cheering the champions. When Justin's name was called, she cheered as loudly as possible. Max, true to form, dressed down, painted green with scales and red lips. He had used magic to glue on horns and grow wings. (She sincerely hoped it was not with a Permanent Gluing Charm.) He danced a bit, and told Justin to distract the dragon.

Halfway through saying, "Harry James Potter" Some nincompoop released the dragons. The announcer lost all sense of decorum, swearing on Merlin's outhouse, and running for cover. The champions froze for one second, and then surged forward, ready for whatever fight came their way.

Justin, predictably, was taking on as much as he could. Jerko, also predictably, abandoned him. The Delacour girls were using magical music to lull the dragons into a peaceful slumber, which would have worked if Viktor had not shot a curse into the eye of his dragon, causing it to flail uncontrollably into the others. Alex let out a scream as her brother stepped between Harry and a fire blast. Justin working together with Harry had been an absolute treat. The standings were as follows:

1) Hogwarts

2) Wiztech

3) Beauxbatons

4) Durmstrang

It was obvious Hogwarts had done best. Jerko had actually been injured, so he actually needed the eye-patch. Viktor had done a fine job, but was penalized for the loss of his partner. Fleur had only failed due to outside interference, since her plan likely would have worked had it not been for Viktor's interference.

Alex ran up to Justin, who smelled like dragon breath, and hugged him, crying. She kissed his cheeks and told him how worried she had been. He held her like she was his heart in his hands.

Alex knew the second task would be worse…

Chapter 11 Parties and Parties and Partygoers

If naming the champions was worth a good romp, the after-party for the competition was worth a shindig on top of a mixer. Justin danced crazily with Ginny, while Harry hopped up and down with Alex. Viktor was trying to talk to Hermione, but Ron was doing a decent job of keeping them apart.

Max and Luna were having an after-party/game commentary, where they both shared their opinions on what had happened and what was going on at the party.

"Justin probably wants to get rid of the deleterious dragon fungus, which tends grow on boys…" Luna was cut off by Max who wondered loudly about himself, then popped his head down into the wizard robes someone had given him. And then he announced that it was moss, not fungus that he was growing.

Harry was finally enjoying himself. The second task was months away, and all he had to worry about was the yuletide ball.

The party wound down quickly. The wizard police had been called in to break up the party (read as riot) leaving Justin and Cedric free to go back to the trophy room.

"He's barmy, Harry, heard him talking to it the other day. Think it talks back when nobody else is around?" Ron breathed during dance class. It had begun as uncomfortable as possible with Max going out and doing his 'distraction dance', which ended with McGonagall driving him off. Ron had grabbed his sister, and Draco had taken an unwilling Alex. Once partner switches came up, Justin got Ginny, and Harry managed to get Alex. Hearing the word 'creeper' come out of her mouth was not reassuring, but Harry started a conversation.

"So…. Are you going?" He asked her.  
>Alex laughed, "I generally stand apart and mock this stuff, but this time… I think I'll go. Justin seems to want to ask the stupid cup to be his date! If he spent any more time in there it would be family." She blushed and added, "I think Justin already asked Ginny." She whispered, "She told him she wasn't allowed to go at the party, and he demanded she go with him. They aren't much of a couple though, I mean, I can't go, what about me?" She whined.<p>

Harry chuckled, and feeling daring, added, "I'll take you."

The dance ended with Harry getting himself a date.

The Stone of Dreams interlude. Well, that was part one, part two is on its way.


End file.
